40 Days of Faith
"Quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword,
out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle,
turned to flight the armies of the aliens."
Hebrews 11:34
It is amazing to read this list of events that happened to the children of God and recognize the spiritual warfare that has always taken place. Living a life for God is without any doubt not for the faint hearted. There are most definitely times that the enemy will come against you with all that he has.
We often forget to consider that what we are going through physically may very well be an attack on our lives spiritually. The book of Hebrews was of course written to the children of Israel who had then and has today a long history of being hated by other nations. Why would such a small and seemingly insignificant nation compared to the size of those around them be disdained so greatly? This has of course been the history of the Jews throughout the Old Testament until today. From the Babylonian Empire to the Roman Empire to Nazi Germany, the Jewish people have been the target of hatred and persecution. This has been true for mainly one reason and that is because God chose to put His name on them and call them His people. It is not so much that other nations hate Israel as much as it is that these nations hate the one, true God.
Now for several centuries we have seen a new group of people that have endured persecution, and that is the church of Jesus Christ. The body of Christ in the church has been the object of scorn, ridicule, and hatred all because it professes that Jesus Christ is Lord. There is no other name or subject as controversial as Jesus. Millions have faced the fire and the sword for their faith.
The astounding thing to consider when comparing the church of Christ and Israel is that in spite of the persecution that both have suffered they continue to be strong even today. The small nation of Israel still stands in spite of the opposition that they have faced for several millennia. The church of Jesus Christ and the living God seems to prosper more in the face of persecution than in any other place. It does not matter what Satan tries; God has set His mark on these chosen people, and He will have His victory.
May you endure until the end!
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